Two new “CD1 Clean Teams” made up of people returning home from incarceration will lead neighborhood improvements in Chinatown and Pico Union, City Councilwoman Eunisses Hernandez announced Wednesday.
During a Wednesday morning news conference, Hernandez highlighted the street cleaning initiative, which is being funded through the California Department of Transportation Clean California Community Cleanup and Employment Pathway grant program.
“Every community deserves clean, safe and accessible public spaces and every person deserves meaningful access to work and opportunity,” Hernandez said in a statement.
The two teams will clean up litter and weeds, address illegal dumping and conduct neighborhood beautification services in areas heavily impacted by debris and illegal dumping, according to Hernandez, who represents the First Council District encompassing some downtown and northeast LA neighborhoods.
Each team consists of three crew members and one supervisor working full-time for about a year. The initiative is being conducted in partnership with the Center for Employment Opportunities.
“This investment creates paid, transitional job opportunities for people returning home to build skills and contribute to their communities,” Center for Employment Opportunities CEO Sam Schaeffer said in a statement. “We look forward to continuing this work together and expanding access to opportunity across Los Angeles.”
The Chinatown team will focus on streets impacted by increased litter and illegal dumping, while the Pico Union team will target freeway underpasses and heavily trafficked streets connecting Pico Union to downtown Los Angeles.
The teams will operate five days a week, cleaning areas identified by residents, constituent requests and ongoing field assessments.
Hernandez’s office already deploys seven clean teams covering the entire district through contracts with the Los Angeles Conservation Corps, Koreatown Youth+Community Center, Chrysalis, Central American Resource Center Los Angeles and Victory Resources.
In total, there are now nine street cleaning crews in the First District.